Installing Runtal Radiators

Introduction: Installing Runtal Radiators

Runtal Radiators are sleek and efficient. A friend of mine gave a few to me that were left over from a job of his. I had no choice on the side of the inlet and outlet, nor choice of btu's. My girlfriend's bedroom is cold and drafty. It only has a small fin tube baseboard radiator. It didn't get enough flow of hot water to heat the room at all.

Step 1: Remove the Old Baseboard

This old baseboard was very very undersized for the room. The rest of the house has large cast iron radiators. How or why this replaced a cast iron by the previous owner, is a mystery. Pop the side covers off. Unscrew the body cover that goes into the wall with drywall screws. I had to remove a little box bump out behind the radiator. I later reused the top of this as a template for my wall top.

I'll mention this in the next step, but turn your heating system off, turn off the water supply, and drain the system most of the way or entirely. If you need to add any corrosion inhibitor, a project like this would be a good time.

Step 2: Dry Fit and Build

I did a mock up of my wall that will support the radiator behind the old baseboard. When I got a good idea of the height and how everything would come together, I removed the wood and began removing the old fin tube pipe. The heating system was turned off at the breaker, water supply turned off, and drained enough so the pipe would be empty when i cut it. I nailed down the bottom of the wall leaving space for baseboard moulding and quarter round. In the second picture you may see that I used a bunch of reducers from 1-1/2 down to 1/2 pipe. that would have been too tall for the radiator. I had to get a special direct 1-1/2 to 1/2 fitting from a plumbing supply store.

With the wall built and appropriate fitting dry fitted in, I made sure everything was level, plumb, etc. I put 2 layers of reflectix behind the studs. I didn't staple it flush to anything, it was so packed behind the studs and the window wall, that it pretty much stayed flush on the sides, top, and bottom. The reflectix will help bounce some of the heat back in to the room.

Step 3: Drywall, Trim, Test Mount.

Drywall, trim, and test mount. Getting the brackets on the radiator to match with the wall brackets i screwed into the studs was a bit tough. However, the brackets on the radiator move left to right. Once they are in the wall brackets with weight pulling down, they won't move. I insured all my pipes fit and I had everything level once again.

Step 4: Spackle, Paint, and Install

Spackle the drywall, Paint the drywall and moulding, and wait til it's dry (I used an electric heater to speed that up). Install the radiator, and add the top piece. I thought it'd be great to get as close to the window trim to "extend" the window sill area. Runtal radiators have side covers that hide the pieces of the pipe that are within a few inches of the side of the radiator. re-fill your system, turn on your heat and make sure all connections are tight.

My plan is to put a second radiator in this room. I'll try to make a second instructable with more detailed pictures.